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Austin FC becomes MLS’ 27th club, to begin play in 2021

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Expansion in Major League Soccer has continued to be expressed around North America with several areas already being granted teams for the near future. Austin FC became the latest team announced, being named the league’s 27th club on Tuesday who will begin MLS play in 2021.

The announcement came at Rustic Tap in Austin with MLS commissioner Don Garber alongside Austin FC chairman/CEO Anthony Precourt and Austin mayor Steve Adler. Austin will become the city’s first team in a major professional sports league and will soon build a privately funded soccer stadium at McKalla Place.

“Austin is a thriving metropolitan city – the personification of what we mean when we say MLS is a ‘League for a new America,’” Garber said in a league release. “We are extremely proud to be the first major professional sports league to become part of the culture of this historic American city. In their support of a world-class soccer stadium that benefits everyone, the leadership of the City of Austin has shown tremendous faith in our league and game, and Anthony Precourt has paved the way for Austin FC to have great success on and off the field. To the people of Austin and the surrounding community, welcome to Major League Soccer.”

Austin will become the third MLS club in Texas, joining Western Conference clubs FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo. It has also been selected by U.S. News and World Report in each of the last two years as the No. 1 place in the nation to live.

Their stadium, which has been listed as a $225 million investment, is expected to see groundbreaking begin this year. It is expected to be completed in time for the team’s first MLS match.

“This is a historic day for Austin, as MLS becomes the first major league to plant roots in our beautiful city,” said Adler. “We believe professional soccer will bring a great and especially needed benefit to our city.”

“In two years, this team and an elite soccer stadium will bring together all kinds of people from all over Austin in a way that we do not gather today. This is one important way we become a more socially integrated community. Thank you to Precourt Sports Ventures and MLS for bringing this opportunity to all the residents of Austin!”

 

Comments

  1. One spot left and then MLS should cool the expansion for awhile. Let the dust settle around the new 28-team make up of the league before deciding what to do next. Cap it at 28 and then bring up the issue again in 5-10 years to see if we are ready to go beyond the 28. I feel bad for Sacramento who looked like a shoo-in a few years ago and whose supporters have been passionate about doing this. Seems like they are not far behind St. Louis, Phx, and maybe even Detroit.

    Reply
    • Amen. Considering my Dad’s family is from San Antonio (they should’ve gotten this team but Austin got it due to the awful Crew relocation situation) and my Mom’s family is from Sacramento (they were absolutely the best candidate a few years ago but the league would rather a second team be in LA), I definitely feel the pain of those two cities. And now for that last 28th slot, I seriously doubt the league will be yet ANOTHER team in Texas or California.

      Stinks.

      Reply
      • Totally.. I live in the North Bay Area and was stoked for a Sacramento team as was about 30 thousand other people in the Sac area. MLS is kind of dead to me right now after the high of expectation and the let down.

    • Not likely to happen exactly as you stated. My guess is that MLS will do what you said, but after they reach 32 teams. That number breaks down better for scheduling, conference balance, and other factors for future consideration.

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      • My take is different. No need to cap expansion. Follow a College Football model. Build up to 4 regional divisions of 10 and two conferences of 20. Build strong local rivalries w/ little inter league – only four show case games to fill out 40 games. Division Finals –> Conference Finals –> National Finals. The soccer dynamic is more regional than other sports – capitalize on it.

  2. Larry is the worst writer in this site. Does anybody edit his stuff? I count a few mistakes and awkward phrases in every one of his posts. That first paragraph is so poorly constructed that I can barely believe it.

    Reply
    • Maybe he just writes beyond your reading comprehension? Just because something isn’t they way you would have worded it, does not mean it is unprofessional or wrong.

      Reply

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